Machine for plaiting



March 23, 1943.

E. L. BENEDICT MACHINE FOR PLAITING Filed Feb. 19. 1940 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 WNN INVENTOR ML .Benedwfi March 23, 1943. E. L. BENEDICT MACHINE FOR PLAITING 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 19, 1940 Illlllil/IIC! Fill/llIl/l INVENTOR Patented Mar. 23, 1943 lvIACHINE FOR PLAITIN G Edward L. Benedict, New York, N. Y., assignor to Eib Products, 1110., New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application February 19, 1940, Serial No. 319,640

1 Claim.

This invention relates to a machine and proces for forming units comprising preferably two or three layers of plaitecl flexible sheets secured together at at least some of their folds and in which one of the sheets has plaits of greater depth than another.

An object is to facilitate the operation of such a machine and minimize delays incident to starting operation at the beginning of each Work day.

Another object is to simplify the machine and the method of forming such units.

A further object is to reduce friction and danger of breakage as well as obtain greater precision in setting the plait forming members or dies.

Referring to the drawings-- Fig. 1 is a side elevation of one embodiment of this invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the device of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a perspective detail showing the forward connection or mounting of the plait forming members.

Fig. 4 is a view showing the plait forming member and a creasing finger after the plaits have been formed.

Fig. 5 is a detail showing the adhesive applying jet after the plaits have been more deeply formed.

Fig. 6 is across section through one of the adhesive jets and creasing fingers shown in Fig. 5.

Fig. '7 shows a detail of some of the yieldable fingers for the backing sheet.

This invention i a continuation in part of ap plication Serial Number 179,184 filed December 10, 1937, for Machine and process for plaiting which has eventuated into Patent 2,196,006 dated April 2, 1940. The numerals below 100 refer to substantially the same parts as have been described in this prior application.

As shown in Fig. 1 the paper or other flexible sheet material for the foundation ii! is wound upon a supply roll and after passing through the usual tensioning devices may travel between the scoring rolls l2 and 13 for the purpose of slightly stretching the paper laterally along lines only wide enough to give the sheet an increased tendency and ease for being folded in forming the plaits. These scoring rolls comprise the roll i2 having peripheral depressions into which the paper or other material is pressed by the cooperating roll I3 having projecting ribs M which press portions of the paper into depressions of the roll l2. The foundation sheet then passes to another set of scoring rolls I 5, i5 similarly but oppositely constructed so as to provide opposite folds in the sheet midway between those formed by the preceding rolls. In this second set of scoring rolls the grooved roll is located above the cooperating roll i3 carrying projecting ribs I 1.

After leaving the scoring rolls the foundation sheet travels to the plait forming dies which in this case include a plurality of stationary wires Hi9 and It)! longitudinally inclined in the manner described for the moving wires in the aforementioned application. The tapered arrange ment of these Wires as shown in Fig. 2 preferably such as to provide a substantially uniform narrowing of the foundation sheet from th time the sheet enters the plait forming dies until it is tightly compressed in th pull out device at the opposite end of the machine. This pull out device has not been shown in this application as it was illustrated in the previous application referred to. The wires 68 and it are also arranged to gradually overlap one another in a direction normal to the travel of the sheet. In other words. the wires it! are not all in the same horizontal plane nor are the wires mo in the same plane but they overlap one another in the vertical plane a gradually increasing amount from the edges of the foundation to the center as was referred to in the aforementioned application.

The drive shaft 3 1 is geared to actuate the scoring rolls at the precise linear travel of the foundation sheet, said shaft being driven from a motor at the pull out end of the machine.

After the foundation has been plaited it is contemplated attaching a flexible backing sheet 4| to one or both sides of the foundation folds. In Fig. 1 only'one such backing sheet is shown in full lines but it'should be understood that a similar roll may also be applied to the lower folds of the foundation as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 1, or either alone may be used.

After the foundation sheet or the backing or both have been coated with the requisite adhesive, a roll 41 applies the backing to the foundation. While the foundation is supported by T- shaped mandrels 72 and 13 previously described more in detail. A subsequent roll 69 of soft rub ber presses the backing 4i against the foundation. The rolls t5 and. 55 serving a-similar purpose of rolls 4'! and 49 respectively may not be used unless the flexible sheets are applied to both sides of the foundation. After passing through these rolls the backing is brushed or ironed against the foundation by the brushes 5!, 55 and 59, the corresponding brushes for the opposite sides being numbered 52,56 and 5d. To insure the tw plaited layers of paper being properly guided, rolls 53 and 54 are provided along the travel of the sheet. Lateral guide rolls 5'! and 58 may also be applied for guiding the plaited sheets after they have been stuck together.

The plait forming wires I are at their forward end secured to adjustable screws I02, the wires IUI being attached to corresponding screws I63 as shown in Figs. 1 and 3 so that the tension in these wires may be adjusted to the desired amount to take out any slack. For more accurately positioning these wires additional stationary supports I04 and I05 are provided. The wires pass around the transversely rounded stationary bars Hi6 and I09 before being secured to their adjusting screws. These screws are each provided with wing nuts IIi'i engaging the machine frame I08.

The supports :04 and I05 are preferably thin metal plates no wider than the diameters of the wires and to which the wires are soldered. These plates are clamped in the bifurcated end portions of a wood or metal support I I0 carried from cross bars IH. Each support III] is slotted as indicated in Figs. 3 and 4 so as to be accurately adjusted in height and held there by tightening the wing nuts II2.

Spaced a few feet more or less from the forward end of the plait forming members are additional supports H3 and II4 for the wires I09 and IIlI respectively. Each such support is adjustably mounted to a horizontal cross bar Ii'I as shown in Fig. 1. Along each lateral edge of the foundation strip is provided a creasing finger I It for preliminarily creasing the edges in order to better guide the material. The finger H6 is located close to the support IM. Lateral edge guide rolls II5 assist in bending the edges of the paper down early in the plait forming operation to assist in guiding the foundation and prevent its being shifted laterally during travel through the plait forming members. A little further on additional supports I I8 similar to those previously described, except that they are inclined, enable the wires to be accurately adjusted in height and spacing. Each of these supports is of the same general type construction having a metal plate clamped therein and soldered to one of the wires. The supports H8 are clamped to a cross bar I I9 by the same type wing nuts.

Corresponding supports I20 and cross bar I2I are provided on the underside of the plait forming dies. On the side of the foundation sheet opposite each of its supports H8 or I20 are provided creasing fingers I22 which iron or smooth the foundation sheet over the supporting wires. These creasing fingers I22 and I I 6 comprise preferably wood, slotted as shown in Figs. 4, 5 and 6. The natural wood resins give the sides of the creasing slot a high polish so as to offer a minimum amount of friction or drag on the paper. Each of these creasing fingers I22 and H6 is preferably slotted as are the supports Hi], I I3 and H8 and clamped in the same way so that they may be accurately adjusted in height and spacing for the thickness of paper used. These creasing fingers should press on the foundation sheet just enough to crease the sheet over the wire. The adjustment of these fingers can be made with sufficient precision so that no spring or other yieldable mounting may be needed though if desired it will be understood that leaf springs or other resilient means may be used to control the degree of pressure of the creasing fingers against the paper.

Located close to the supports H8 and H9 are the adhesive applying jets I23, one such jet being mounted adjacent each wire so that the paper may be coated. These jets or nozzles are of the shape illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6 and are slightly grooved so that the adhesive may be supplied to not only the crease but, if desired, slightly down the sides of the foundation sheet on each side of the crease or fold.

Adhesive is supplied to these nozzles I23 by pressure, an air compressor supplying the desired amount of compressed air through the pipe I24 to the adhesive containing tank I25. The air pressure on top of the adhesive in the tank I25 forces the adhesive out through the discharge pipe I26, which pipe should extend to adjacent the bottom of the tank I25. From the riser I26 the adhesive passes to a header I21 extending across the foundation and then through a num ber of supply pipes to each jet I23, a valve I28 being preferably located above each jet. When a flexible sheet is to be attached to the lower side the same arrangement of nozzles is provided for the folds on the lower side of the foundation, the same being shown in Fig. 1 only in dotted lines. The rear' end of the plait forming wires I88 and H3! is soldered to the T-shaped mandrels i2 and I3 by having the mandrels recessed enough to allow the wires to be attached and soldered in place without imposing any excessive friction on the paper as it passes through the wires and mandrels. As the foundation passes between the mandrels. the outer or backing sheet or sheets 4| are attached, the same being done by the applying rolls 41 in the manner described in the prior application. In addition to the brushes, or in place of some of them, it has been found convenient to use a number of wire fingers i29 of the general shape illustrated in Fig. 7 carried by a cross bar I30, each of these yieldable wire fingers having just enough resiliency to hold the backing sheet in between the foundation folds but not enough resiliency to be in danger of breaking the backing sheet which is generally of less strength than the foundation.

The plait forming wires are preferably polished to reduce friction and those used were of bronze about eg of an inch in diameter though of course other sizes and materials may be used for the wires. These stationary wires have been found more desirable as plait forming members because of the greater precision possible in setting them, which results in a more uniform product being formed. These wires are freer from vibration and sag and also offer less friction to the travel of the foundation. The flexible wires contemplated in the prior application were subject to more vibration and in order to make them flexible they were formed of strands. In practice it was found these wires might cease to travel with the foundation sheet with the result very substantial friction was offered to the foundation by the strands. When the scoring rolls are used as shown in Fig. 1 the preliminary narrowing or forming of the plaits occurs as early as over the supporting roll I3I under the travel of the foundation sheet at commercial speeds. Although not all folding occurs in this area, some portions of the paper may be initially folded or plaited after the foundation has passed into the plait forming wires.

An important feature of this invention is the ease with which the adhesive applying jets may be placed in condition for use after having been out of use during a night or longer. The adhesive used is a casein type made flexible with latex. When the machin is shut down at night the operator needs only to place a small bit of wax paper between each jet and the foundation sheet. In the morning the wax paper can be removed and each jet either opened with a pin or if not satisfactory each jet may be removed and washed with warm water and soap until clean.

The adhesive jets should be preferably of stainless steel, or iron or some other material not affected by the adhesive. If the adhesive jet is spaced too far from the foundation sheet the adhesive will be found to be applied in the form of separate drops. On the other hand if too close to the foundation sheet the adhesive may spread too much and be too thin. The amount of adhesive applied to the foundation sheet can be controlled by the valve opening as well as by the spacing of the jet from the sheet. The separation of the adhesive applying jet from the backing applying roll 41 by a few feet or more enables the adhesive to have time to take hold of the paper before it is contacted with the backing, although of course this distance may be varied.

.The creasing fingers should be notched so that the angle of the sides of the notch is about that desired for the paper. While the creasing fingers have been used only in conjunction with the scoring rolls, it is believed the use of creasing fingers should enable the scoring rolls to be eliminated, especially if used more frequently than has been indicated in Figs. 1 and 2.

Where the backing sheet is to be secured to one of the slat-like portions of the foundation for a substantial width, a different type of jet than that shown may be used as is known in the art to include a slot extending transversely of the travel of the foundation so that the adhesive may be applied simultaneously over a substantial area.

The use of creasing fingers and adhesive jets reduces the danger of lint piling up behind the doctor blade as could occur with a device of the previous application. The moistening of portions of the foundation with a hydrated paper stock such as sulphite, sulphate or kraft pulp beaten in a Hollender beater causes the paper to become stiffened almost as though it had been starched when dried. The creasing fingers instead of being located Where shown may of course be located to cooperate with the paper as it passes along the mandrels. After the adhesive is set it becomes water insoluble. It is believed the distance between the pull-out of and the soft rubber roll 49 can be substantially shortened by the use of more horizontal as well as vertical guide rolls and spring fingers of the type shown in Fig. 7, although this has not yet been tried out.

A product of this invention maybe that shown and described in pending application Serial Number 213,841, filed June 15, 1938, for Decorative plaited unit. Instead of paper of the weights indicated in said product application, the foundation may be of fabric, or of metal foil or various other flexible sheet materials including leatherette and the like. The stem of the adhesive jet should be slightly flexible so thatit may be bent laterally a little when necessary to exactly position the center of the jet over the foundation fold.

The preliminary bending of the lateral edge portions of the sheet during the plait forming operation is believed advantageous as has heretofore been mentioned. In the embodiment illustrated with the exception of the scoring rolls the foundation and its attached sheet or sheets is pulled through the machine entirely by the pullout device. The ironing fingers referred to in the prior machine and process application are used. The folds in the foundation sheet are more precisely and uniformly formed by the creasing fingers.

I claim:

In a machine for forming a unit comprising at least two sheets of flexible plaited material connected along at least some of their folds and one of said sheets having plaits of less depth than the other, the combination with means for gradually plaiting the sheet having the deeper plaits, of means for applying adhesive along and slightly away from the folds on at least one side, and means for applying the other sheet to the adhesive coated portions of the first sheet, said first mentioned means including a stationary support for the folds to be coated, and a stationary grooved adhesive applying nozzle closely adjacent each fold to be coated, and means for supplying adhesive under pressure to said grooved nozzle.

EDWARD L. BENEDICT. 

